Amanda Parrish receives Margaret Bradley Award

April 14, 2008

The Greater Boston Track Club is pleased to award the 2008 Margaret Bradley Award to Amanda Parrish, a Margaret Bradley teammate.

When Amanda Parrish arrived at the University of Chicago from her native Westport, CT she knew no one. On an early workout out to the Lakefront that was to be at tempo pace freshman Amanda kept up with senior Margaret Bradley for many miles mostly because she found the conversation so good. Then Margaret said to Amanda, “Ok, now we are going to pick it up to tempo pace.” Amanda was forced to confess that she was already running at her tempo pace and that she could go no faster. By senior year she could go much faster, (38:41 10 km) but owes much of her college success to Margaret’s welcoming ways. “

On Amanda’s first day of pre-season at Chicago she found it scary not knowing anyone, but Captain-of-the-Team, Margaret Bradley, careful not to leave freshman festering in the dorm, made sure they got out to discover the good restaurant deals in the city. By her senior year Amanda herself was captain of the track and cross-country teams at the University of Chicago.

Amanda Parrish went on to become a history major at the University of Chicago graduating in (’04) and is now finishing her master’s degree in English Literature with an emphasis on creative writing. Just this week she passed her master’s comprehensive exam at grad school in Washington, DC. She will be applying for High school English teaching jobs in the fall and hopes to keep writing fiction, continue coaching (which she has been doing for the past two years). As for running plans, she’ says, “I’d like to continue to focus on longer events because my favorite kind of training runs are long tempos, fartleks and long distance runs. I’m not sure that I have the leg speed for a 5k anymore! Although, I do still really enjoy short summer road races and have loved coaching as a new way to be involved in the sport.”

Lately Amanda Parrish has run the following:

Vermont City Marathon in 2006 in 3:25

Cherry Blossom 10 Miler in 2007 in 1:06:06

Philadelphia Distance Run in 2007 in 1:31

Her PRs for other distances are 18:41 for 5k and 38:40 for 10k (2004), 2:13 for 30k (2006) and 1:30 for the half marathon (2006 Caesar Rodney Half Marathon, 2006)

Margaret L. Bradley was a member of GBTC who died while on a trail run through the Grand Canyon on July 10, 2004, at the age of 24. Margaret ran the 2003 Chicago marathon in 2:58:52, and led the GBTC women’s team to victory in the 2004 Boston marathon with a time of 3:04:54, finishing as 31st woman. Margaret lived in Chicago in 2003 and 2004, and while living there she competed with the Universal Sole track club.

GBTC and Universal Sole have jointly established the Margaret Bradley award in honor of Margaret. The intent of the award is to send one runner annually from GBTC to compete in the Chicago marathon and to bring one runner annually from Universal Sole to compete in the Boston marathon. The two clubs intend for the award to continue in perpetuity for the purpose of recognizing and aiding aspiring young, female marathoners who are of similar ability to that of Bradley. The award covers the travel expenses of the selected athlete. A member of the local club will host the visiting athlete while she is in either city for the race.

Donations to the Margaret Bradley Endowment fund can be made through the fund’s web page. There is also a list a previous recipients of the award and links to articles about Margaret Bradley’s life and death.

About GBTC

The Greater Boston Track Club (GBTC) is a friendly and competitive team with approximately 200 members.
We compete at the national, regional, and local levels in cross country, track and field, and trail running. GBTC provides a team-oriented, structured training environment for athletes of many abilities who train for everything from jumps and throws to sprints, road races, cross country, and marathons. Members train for several specific competitions throughout the year, and financial support is provided to compete at some major events. We sponsor athletes based on a system of performance standards, and the club is a designated USATF Elite Development Club.